


That'll be the Day

by Denise



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-28
Updated: 2012-06-28
Packaged: 2017-11-08 17:48:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/445832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denise/pseuds/Denise
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Daniel's death, SG-1 goes on a mission that may well be their last.</p>
            </blockquote>





	That'll be the Day

 

 

That'll be the Day

By

Denise

 

 

 

 

August 1st

 

 

"Can I go on record saying that I don't like this?" Jack said, strolling from the back of the teltac to the front control area. Sam turned in her chair, giving her superior a look, then turned back to look out the front window.

 

"We know, Jack. We heard you the first ten times," Jacob said, rolling his eyes.

 

"I'm just saying that this whole thing reeks worse than last week's bait," Jack insisted, coming up to lean against the large pedestal between the two seats. "It's odd enough that some informant only wants to talk to us, it's even odder when it's on a planet that doesn't have a Stargate."

 

"If you think about it, Jack, there are more planets out there without gates than with them," Jacob shot back.

 

"That's because most of them don't support life. Who exactly **are** we meeting?"

 

Jacob nodded and his voice changed, signaling that Selmac was in control. "Spegla made contact through one of our informants in Anubis' ranks. He claims to have important information, not only on Anubis, but also where he has been getting his weapons. Information he will only give to you, or more accurately, SG-1. He would only meet on Vonra, a planet without a Stargate."

 

"Yeah, and nobody's 'this is a trap' radar has gone off yet?" Jack demanded sarcastically.

 

"Find me a 'we want to meet you' situation that isn't a potential trap, and Selmac will eat her hat," Jacob snapped back, clearly growing irritated. "If we didn’t think this was important, we'd ignore him. But given that Anubis is now a System Lord, and he's tried to destroy Earth at least once, we thought you'd be interested too. Unless you want me to turn the teltac around and take you back home. I'm sure George will understand."

 

Jack sighed and ran his fingers through his short-cropped hair. "Wake me up when we get there," he said, turning on his heel and striding back to the cargo hold.

 

"He's in a good mood," Jacob said after Jack was out of earshot, shooting Sam a glance.

 

She smiled slightly. "He's been that way for a while. It'll change when we get to the planet."

 

"It's Daniel, isn't it?" he asked quietly, knowing the answer immediately from the look on her face. "Sam, if he's not ready…."

 

"Dad…he just doesn't like to lose. How long until we get there?" She asked, blatantly changing the topic.

 

"Within the hour," he said, accepting her silent demand.

 

"I thought you said Vonra was a week away?"

 

"Normally, yes. As the crow flies, the Makron system is a three-hour trip from Earth. But Yu's territories are between Earth and Vonra. Normally, to avoid any conflicts or problems like we had when we reprogrammed the Tobin mines, we'd just go around. I happen to know, however, that Yu's out on a tour of his holdings to shut down rumors that Osiris killed him back on the space station. And right now, he's far enough away that we can risk taking a shortcut. If all works out, I'll drop you guys off, take a quick spin around the system, then come back in an hour or so and get back to Earth in time for you to take your old man out for dinner at Mister Yen's," he suggested, his eyes twinkling merrily.

 

"You're shameless," she said, chuckling.

 

"I can honestly say they have the best chicken chow mein on thirty planets."

 

"Ok," she agreed, getting to her feet. "It's a date. I'm gonna go get our stuff together."

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

"I'll be back in a couple of hours," Jacob said, pushing the buttons to activate the rings.

 

Jack nodded and they were beamed down to the planet. "Why do I feel like I'm thirteen again and my mom just dropped me off at the movies?"

 

"The rendezvous should be over there," Sam said, pointing behind Teal'c.

 

"That way it is. Teal'c, you have point."

 

The trio fell into a pattern, Teal'c in front and Jack at the rear with Sam in the middle. Vonra was a fairly desolate planet, farther from its sun than Earth. The vegetation was sparse, short, tough grass and a few scraggly bushes. The sky was cloudy, and according to Carter, always would be. The planet was recovering from a nuclear winter and the climate was perpetually cloudy and cool. The rugged terrain provided some good cover, but he also knew that any bad guys could be using it to hide just as easily at they were. The gullies between the hills were rough and eroded and Jack could see obvious signs of recent flash floods.

 

He remembered Jacob saying that the planet had been inhabited and a Goa'uld outpost up until five years ago or so, then there had been an asteroid strike. In the case of Vonra, it was a planet killer. Apparently the Goa'uld had totally pulled up stakes and bailed, taking the Stargate with them.

 

If this was what the aftermath of a nuclear winter looked like, they were damn lucky they'd managed to stop the asteroid from hitting Earth, Jack thought, feeling a little depressed at the utter desolation of the planet. It reminded him of the footage he'd seen from Oregon and Mount Saint Helens. Everything was black and the air smelled musty and full of decay. Occasionally he could see the skeleton of an animal peeking out of the rank soil. It was like walking through a graveyard or ancient battlefield where the dead had been left where they'd fallen to decompose unnoticed and un-mourned.

 

He felt the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. This planet was seriously starting to creep him out. He'd been in some desolate places in his life, but this one was bothering him worse than most. "Any carnivorous critters we should worry about?" Jack asked quietly.

 

"No, sir," Sam said, glancing back at him. "The asteroid pretty much wiped everything out. There might be some small rodents but it'll probably take a few thousand years for the planet to rejuvenate."

 

"So, we'd call this place…tic-tac?" Jack said.

 

"Telak, O'Neill. The phrase is Telak," Teal'c said, adopting a tone of long suffering forbearance.

 

"Aah. Of course…Telak, silly of me." Teal'c held up his hand and they immediately dropped down. Sam pivoted to keep an eye on their six while Jack closed the gap. "Teal'c?"

 

"There is something wrong." They both cautiously made their way forward, peeking over the rise.

 

Jack pulled out his scope to take a closer look at the corpse lying a few dozen yards away. What the planet lacked in animal life, it apparently made up for in insects, many of which were enjoying the rare feast provided to them by the body. "Spegla?"

 

"That would be my assumption, O'Neill," Teal'c confirmed.

 

"He hasn't been dead that long, which means we're probably not alone. Let's book back to the landing site and hope Dad shows up before whoever did that does," Jack decided.

 

They started to retrace their steps, each person scanning their surroundings with a new tension. They reached the insertion point and hung back, not wanting to expose themselves. "Jacob?" Jack called into the radio. "Jacob?" He repeated. Jack heard a faint roar and looked up to see a teltac sweep down, approaching the RV location. Jack started to step out, only to stop when the heavy whump of a staff cannon cut through the air.

 

"No!" he heard Sam say as the craft shook and careened off course. They watched the pilot try to regain control, struggling to gain some altitude. He succeeded for a few seconds, and then suddenly veered to the right, crashing into the distant hills with a fiery explosion. " **Dad**!" Sam yelled, struggling to her feet. Teal'c reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her back down just as the ground at her feet exploded with a staff blast.

 

Jack turned, cursing under his breath as he saw a dozen Jaffa come over the ridge, firing upon their position. He returned fire, glancing back to see Teal'c still occupied keeping Sam under cover. "Carter! Return fire, goddamn it, or I'll shoot you myself!" he yelled.

 

His angry words snapped her out if it, and she brought up her P-90, emptying the clip in a matter of seconds.

 

"O'Neill, we can not defend this position," Teal'c yelled in between bursts from his staff weapon. Jack just nodded and followed Teal'c as he began to back away. Realizing that Sam was still firing, Jack grabbed her arm, dragging her with him as they ran for their lives.

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

"I believe we have eluded them, O'Neill," Teal'c said.

 

Jack knelt over, his hands on his knees as he breathed heavily. Sam stopped beside him, going down on one knee, also gasping for breath.

 

"What the…hell...was…that?" Jack gasped.

 

"A very large contingent of Jaffa."

 

"Ya think? What are they doing here?" They had been running for the better part of an hour, occasionally exchanging fire with the pursuing Jaffa. They'd soon left the open area behind them, running through the skeletal remains of a forest for the last half hour or so. The uneven terrain of the fallen and rotting trees were probably what had allowed them to elude the Jaffa.

 

"I would presume to stop Spegla from imparting his knowledge."

 

"They gotta have a ship, right?" Jack asked.

 

Teal'c nodded. "At least one, perhaps more."

 

"Then that's what we'll do. Find the ship and get the hell off this rock." Jack looked at his silent teammate, staring off into the distance. "Carter…"

 

"Where would they park the ship, Teal'c?" she asked, ignoring Jack.

 

Teal'c silently met Jack's gaze, then accepted Sam's boundaries. "I do not know for certain." He pointed at a small hill, the highest point around. "Perhaps from that vantage point I can discern it. If it is cloaked however, we will not be able to see it."

 

Jack sighed. "We'll cross that bridge when we get there. You got point."

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

August 2nd

 

 

Jack's internal clock woke him and he glanced at his watch for confirmation. 0200. Time for his watch. They were bivouacked on the banks of a small stream, its water running over barren rocks. The stream had carved a small cave in the bank, the water washing away the dirt and leaving only dead, dangling tree roots. As shelter went, it wasn't the best. With the extreme sparseness of the vegetation, he knew flash floods were a very real concern. There were only a few rotting roots to hold onto the dirt. If they'd had the time and the energy, he'd have looked for a better place. But after climbing the hill and finding nothing but more barren landscape, they'd all been too tired and demoralized to search for a better campsite.

 

This was one mission they were horribly ill equipped for. Expecting a quick meet and greet, they hadn't even brought their packs down. Who wanted to haul around two weeks worth of rations, times three, for a simple hike across an empty planet?

 

He and Carter had a couple more clips each, his sidearm and her zat. And they had Teal'c's staff weapon. They also had a couple basic first aid kits and various odds and ends in the pockets of their vests, along with two canteens each. Each of them had a half dozen or so ration bars and some water purification tablets, but nothing more. Stretching stiffly, he crawled across the low cave, kneeling beside Sam who was on watch.

 

Since her outburst at the RV site, she'd said little, silently walking between him and Teal'c. He couldn't blame her. Watching your father get blasted out of the sky was enough to totally ruin anyone's day. It didn't stop him from being concerned. Grief could do strange things to a person.

 

He crouched beside her, trying to read the expression on her face in the faint moonlight. Outwardly she looked calm and composed, but he knew inside her emotions had to be reeling.

 

"Penny for them," he said quietly. On an ordinary planet, voices usually carried, on one with virtually no animal life, they carried even further.

 

She sighed and closed her eyes. "I was thinking about the teltac," she replied. "It should have crashed just over there." She pointed off to the right.

 

"Carter…Sam, there's no way…"

 

"We might be able to salvage something," she cut him off. "Our food, maybe the radio."

 

"You don’t think the Jaffa have thought of that?" He asked.

 

"They don't need supplies," she said softly. "They could have left by now, for all we know."

 

"That is not likely," Teal'c spoke up, startling Jack a bit. He never knew exactly how deeply the Jaffa meditated and how much he could or did hear going on in his surroundings. "They may have killed Spegla to keep his information from reaching us, or it may have been an elaborate trap from the beginning. If their mission is to capture us, they will not stop until they accomplish that mission, or die in the process."

 

Jack sighed. "As odd as it is to say it, it's probably for the best if they **are** hunting us. As long as they stay, we have a way off this rock. Carter, go get some sleep, I've got the watch," he said, settling in.

 

"Sir, I'm not--"

 

"Sleep, now," Jack ordered gently.

 

She opened her mouth to argue, then closed it and slumped a bit, sighing softly. "Yes, sir," she whispered, crawling to the back of the cave.

 

"I shall relieve you in three hours, O'Neill," Teal'c said, closing his eyes.

 

Jack turned his attention back outside their refuge, listening to the slight gurgle of the water running a few feet away. It was a bad day; they were just having a bad day.

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

 

Sam glanced at the Colonel lying atop a rise, taking a close look at the wreckage with his scope. The teltac had hit hard, bits of debris were strewn in an area about the size of a football field. The fuselage had broken up, lying scattered on the sides of a deep crater. It was obvious that the pilot had nosedived into the ground. Despite her hopes from the night before, she knew it was a long shot to find anything useable in the destruction, but they had to take a look. If they could salvage the rations, those ten day's worth of food could last three times that, buying them more time to find a way to get off the planet. If not, they'd have to act sooner. And sooner may not be better.

 

The Jaffa patrols were heavy. Teal'c had estimated anywhere from twenty to forty warriors were searching for them. And they'd eventually cross paths. It had already taken them the better part of the day just to hike the five miles from their shelter last night to the crash site. They'd had to change their course several times and twice just lie down in a gully and hope the Jaffa didn't notice them.

 

She saw him take one last look, then he gave the signal and they slid down the embankment. "It looks clear. I’m going to go take a peek. You two wait here," he said.

 

"Sir, wouldn't it be better if--"

 

"Carter, ten to one it's a trap. That's why the Jaffa have been so heavy. If we're all down there, we have no chance of getting out. "

 

"Which means the less time we're down there, the better," she insisted, not quite knowing why she was so desperate to see the crash up close. In the back of her mind she knew it wasn't going to be pleasant, but in an odd way she felt drawn to it.

 

"Carter, trust me. This isn't the first crash site I've poked around. You don't want to go down there," he said. "You and Teal'c stay up here to provide cover fire. If things go south, you two bail…that's an order."

 

She looked over at Teal'c and saw that he felt the same way that she did. Only he kept his feelings to himself. "Yes, sir," she said, knowing that if push came to shove, there was no way in hell she'd obey that order, not while there was a chance they could do something.

 

He gave her a look, almost as if he'd heard her internal insubordination, then got to his feet. He crested to top of the rise and slid over, trying to keep his profile low. Sam and Teal'c laid on the crest where they could keep an eye on both the crater and their surroundings. Sam pulled out her binoculars and watched Jack pick his way through bits of twisted metal and mounds of dirt. Once or twice he paused and picked something up, only to let it drop back to the scorched earth. Sam glanced over at Teal'c and saw that he was scanning the area, keeping his eyes open for Jaffa.

 

Trusting her friend to keep watch, Sam turned her attention back to watching the Colonel. He was just reaching the largest part of the wreckage. She saw him look up and nod, then he slipped inside.

 

"Major Carter--"

 

"Teal'c, please," Sam interrupted. "I--"

 

"When we return to Earth, I would like to perform the Ritual of Remembrance for Jacob Carter," he said, ignoring her interruption.

 

She blinked fast, trying to quell the sudden tears that filled her eyes. Unable to answer without her voice giving her away, she nodded.

 

"Jaffa are coming," he said abruptly, pulling his staff weapon closer.

 

"Which way?" Sam scanned their surroundings, trying to see what he saw.

 

"That way, perhaps twenty."

 

"Colonel?" Sam whispered into the radio. "We've got company coming."

 

"He will not have time to escape," Teal'c said, pointing at the Jaffa they could see approaching.

 

"Carter?" Sam looked down and saw Jack step out of the wreckage.

 

"Stay there, sir. Teal'c and I will lead them off."

 

"Major--" Jack protested.

 

"We can not defend this position and you, O'Neill. We shall evade them in the forest and return to the campsite," Teal'c said, meeting Sam's eyes as he got to his feet.

 

"Pssst! Hi guys!" Sam whistled, waving at the Jaffa. They waited until they heard the Jaffa yell and start after them, then they ran.

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

Jack cautiously approached the streambed, his movements slow and deliberate in the moonlight. Damn them. Where the hell did they get the stupid idea of 'leading the bad guys away'? That crap was straight out of the movies…bad movies. He should have known showing introducing Teal'c to the Duke was a bad idea, but damnit, they were all he'd had. And anything was better than Star Wars for the seventy-fifth time.

 

True to their intentions, Carter and Teal'c had successfully led the Jaffa away. All Jack had had to do was wait for them to leave, then make his way out of the crater. Unfortunately, he hadn't found anything of value. Either the Jaffa had already picked the site clean, or it'd all been destroyed in the crash.

 

He got within a hundred yards of the cave and stopped, crouching down. They hadn't had time to arrange for a signal and he was in no mood to catch any friendly fire. He couldn't use the radio for fear the Jaffa had captured them. If they had been caught, he was their only hope of rescue. Calling out or whistling was also out of the question.

 

He shifted and knocked a small rock loose. It clattered against another, giving Jack an idea. He picked up the stone and carefully knocked it against the other five times in quick succession, in a pattern he hoped Carter would know. Holding his breath, he waited for a reply. A minute later he did it again, and got the same result.

 

Guessing that they just didn’t get it, he slowly made his way forward. "Carter? Teal'c?" he whispered when he was right outside the recess. Looking in, he discovered why they weren't responding. They weren't there. Telling himself that they could more than take care of themselves, he settled down to wait.

 

Two hours later he heard the faint sound of footsteps approaching. Insanely wishing for the ability to sense Jaffa, he raised his gun, bracing his back against the wall. A small rock skittered into the cave, bouncing across the uneven floor. "Anyone home?" he heard Sam whisper.

 

"Yeah," he answered, lowering his gun. Sam and Teal'c entered the cave, the major sitting down on the ground with a sigh.

 

"It's about time," Jack growled as she reached for her water bottle.

 

"Sir?"

 

"O'Neill?"

 

"Whose bright idea was it to play John Wayne?" he asked, letting his worry of the past couple of hours take form in irrational anger.

 

"Colonel?" Sam asked, lowering the unopened bottle.

 

"That's the kind of crap that gets folks killed. I thought you knew better," Jack continued.

 

"There were too many of them for us to engage. You were a sitting duck down in that crater."

 

"We were able to easily elude them in the forest," Teal'c said.

 

"You shouldn't have had to elude them, you were supposed to bail," Jack said.

 

"And leave you behind?"

 

"Yes."

 

"And if the positions had been reversed, if we'd been in the wreckage, you would have left?" Sam asked sarcastically.

 

"Yes," Jack said coldly.

 

"Oh please," she said, rolling her eyes.

 

"That's pretty damned insubordinate… **Major**."

 

"Major Carter speaks the truth. Had our positions been reversed, you would have acted as we did," Teal'c said.

 

"It doesn't matter what I would have done. You were supposed to do what I tell you do to," Jack insisted.

 

"Feel free to court-martial me when we get home," Sam snapped, getting to her feet. "Here." She pulled two zats out of her jacket. "We took those off the Jaffa we killed. Teal'c also overheard them talking, he's got an idea where their teltac is parked. Now if you will excuse me… **sir** , I think it's my watch." She spun on her heel and stalked to the entrance of the cave, pointedly sitting with her back to her teammates.

 

Jack watched her leave, then turned to Teal'c. "It will take all our skill to defeat the Jaffa and escape this planet. That goal will be much harder to accomplish if we are also fighting amongst ourselves," Teal'c said quietly.

 

Jack sighed and took off his hat, scratching his head. "What took you guys so long?"

 

"Two of the Jaffa pursued us into the forest and we hid. We had to remain hidden until the night mists forced them to abandon the search. They were most persistent." Teal'c settled down into his pose for meditation. "You should rest, O'Neill. It will take us many hours to reach the landing place tomorrow. If we have luck, this shall be our last night on this planet."

 

"Yeah, " Jack said, taking one last look at Sam's back. "If we're lucky."

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

August 3rd

 

 

Teal'c watched the mists dance over the dark water of the stream and glanced back into the cave at his companions. Both O'Neill and Major Carter were sleeping fitfully. He knew they found the cool climate of Vonra uncomfortable. There was a pervasive dampness in the air that he found seeped into everything. Each night there was a mist that turned into a heavy dew with the dawn. It made any sort of camping in the open impossible or at the very least, incredibly uncomfortable. Even under cover as they were, he found his clothes growing uncomfortably damp in the morning.

 

They had no blankets or other forms of protection, and only the clothing they wore. Teal'c knew that a fire could do a lot to chase the dampness from their shelter, but they didn't dare build one. There was no way a fire would go unnoticed.

 

He heard O'Neill mutter a bit as he rolled over in his sleep. It was going to be difficult to gain control of the teltac. And he feared that it would be even more difficult given the current mental states of his remaining teammates. Both of them were in pain over Daniel Jackson's death, Major Carter's complicated by her grief for her father. He knew both of them held no rancor towards the other, but like a wounded animal, both were striking out at each other.

 

He had thought that the impromptu dinner at O'Malley's would have helped things. And perhaps it would have, had they not been exposed to the stress of this mission.

 

They needed to succeed and gain egress from this planet. He knew the climate and the lack of food was beginning to take its toll. And he feared things would only get worse. His symbiote did offer him extra stamina, however it came at a price. Ultimately the creature would strive for its own survival. If their privations went on for too great a time, eventually Junior would begin to rob Teal'c's body of what remaining nutrients it had. Or, perhaps worse, it would seek to abandon him and take a host. Because of this, he needed to be on his guard.

 

A faint roar swelled through the heavy mist, echoing off the opposite bank and the heavy clouds above. Recognizing the sound, Teal'c got to his feet and hurried outside, straining his eyes and ears. He heard the sound of a teltac's engine powering up. A sinking feeling clawing its way through his stomach, he ran, headed towards where he'd heard the two Jaffa saying the ship was kept. The roar of the engines swelled and blasted overhead, the very bottom of the ship cutting through the ever-present clouds.

 

He turned, and followed it, imagining more than seeing the ship attaining orbit and escaping the planet. He stared up, not caring that the mist was soaking his already damp clothes. Perhaps they were just going for a supply run. Or perhaps there were more than one teltac on the planet. Or.… His hopeful thoughts were broken by the snap of a staff weapon being armed. His blood growing cold, he froze, disgust warring with disbelief.

 

"The great _sholva_ ," a voice sneered. "My reward shall be great. And even greater when you lead me to your companions."

 

"I have no companions," he said, slowly turning to face his captor. He was a young man, appearing to be approximately twenty Earth years old. The tattoo of Anubis adorned his head, however Teal'c could see that he had once served Cronos, the faint outlines of a removed tattoo just visible on his forehead.

 

The young warrior smiled confidently. "There are three of you, although I do not know why the last member of SG-1 did not come. My lord Anubis will be most displeased."

 

"I'm worried," Jack quipped, slamming the butt of his P-90 into the back of the Jaffa's head.

 

Teal'c grabbed the staff weapon, twisting it out of the Jaffa's hands as he fell. Teal'c tackled him, pinning him to the wet ground. Pulling his knife from it's sheath, he held it to the Jaffa's throat. "You will lead us to the ship and aid us in taking it. Do this, and I shall let you live," Teal'c growled, putting enough pressure on the man's throat to send a small trickle of blood running down the side of his throat.

 

The Jaffa snorted. "There is no ship. Not any more. We are as marooned as you," he said.

 

"What?" Sam asked, keeping a wary eye on their surroundings. The sound of the teltac taking off had awakened her and Jack and they'd hurried from the cave, easily able to sneak up on the distracted Jaffa.

 

"By the order of my lord, we are to capture you, or die."

 

"Then where'd the ship go?" Jack asked. "What's the fun in catching us if you can't gloat about it?"

 

"My lord shall return when we have captured you. He does us a great honor. If we succeed, he shall reward us, if we fail, our families shall know we died in battle, as a warrior should die."

 

"He just left you here? With no supplies?" Sam asked.

 

"How do you contact him?" Jack asked.

 

"We do not call our lord.  He knows when we have succeeded," the Jaffa said, a look of confident disdain on his ruddy face.

 

Jack looked to Teal'c who shrugged. "Colonel?" Sam whispered, tightening her grip on her gun. "Someone's coming."

 

Teal'c tilted his head, also picking up the faint thump of approaching footsteps. "Major Carter is correct."

 

"My lord Anubis shall gain much enjoyment from drawing the secrets of the Tau'ri from your brains," the Jaffa said, struggling against Teal'c's grasp.

 

Jack calmly raised his gun and struck him in the head, rendering him unconscious.  Teal'c stood up, picking up the staff weapon from the ground. "We must leave. They will be here soon," he turned to leave, followed by Sam. They heard three quick zat blasts in quick succession and turned back, shocked to see only Jack standing there, a small depression in the mud all that remained of the Jaffa.

 

"Colonel?"

 

"All bets are off, " Jack said. "It's them or us. Personally, I prefer us." He walked past them.

 

Teal'c exchanged a look with Major Carter, registering the shock on her face. "If Anubis did not wish to have us alive, the Jaffa would show us no quarter," he said, reaching out to take her arm. Pulling her after him, they quickly slipped back into the mist, headed towards the skeletal forest and the meager shelter it provided.

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

August 10th

 

 

 

Sam absently scraped some dirt from under her fingernail and sighed. "This is a cliché," she muttered, fighting the urge to tap her feet.

 

"Clichés are clichés because they work," Jack said, lying out of sight in a small depression under the fallen tree she was leaning against.

 

"Why do I have to be bait?"

 

She heard Jack sigh. "Because I said so," he snapped.

 

Not in the mood for yet another fight, she crossed her arms across her chest and stared straight ahead. It'd been like this for the last week, both of them barely civil to each other, any sense of familiarity gone. The Colonel was more impatient with her than he had ever been on that first mission to Abydos.

 

Rationally she knew his frustration didn't lie totally with her. It lay with their situation. They'd been marooned for ten days now. Even stretching them out, they'd eaten the last of their small stash of ration bars a couple of days ago. Teal'c had tried some of the sparse grass and had looked for any sort of roots, but had been unsuccessful in finding anything edible. The rodents she'd noticed before had been incredibly hard to find, and even harder to catch when their only real weapons, staffs or zats, were unusable since they created too much noise. With no fish or birds, they'd been reduced to raiding the Jaffa for food.

 

Which was why she was seated on a log within sight of a trail the Jaffa used, playing bait in hope of luring some of them to their death, and to get some much needed supplies.

 

They'd tried to raid the Jaffa camp a couple of times, but since those raids usually resulted in them having to run for their lives, the risks were far greater than the benefits.

And, even though the colonel hadn't put it that way, she also knew that physically they would not be able to run for it much longer. Ration bars were meant to tide a person over for a couple of days, not be the sole source of nutrition for an extended length of time.

In an average day, they were burning more calories than they took in, when they had to run for miles, it was even worse.

 

She knew if they couldn't find a way off this planet in the next week or two, they weren't going to be getting off. And the Colonel knew that too.

 

Which was one reason she hadn't brought up that they were nearly out of water purification tablets, too. They could survive for about a month with little or no food, but their survival was limited to mere  days if they didn't have potable water.

 

Her radio clicked, pulling her attention back to the present. "Sir?" she asked quietly as she lay down on her stomach, her zat held at the ready under her body.

 

"I hear it. Look sharp."

 

She tensed, searching the area, trying not to look like she was searching the area. "Four of them, twelve o'clock," she whispered, forcing herself to lie still even though all her instincts screamed for her to duck into cover.

 

"Relax. We got ya," Jack said.

 

She forced herself to lie still, her heart pounding in her chest as they drew closer. Though knew the Colonel was poised to strike and that Teal'c was slipping in behind the Jaffa, it still didn't stop her from being more than a little afraid to be lying out, exposed and vulnerable.

 

"Go," she heard Jack order. Immediately the stillness of the forest was broken by the zinging of zats and staff weapon fire. Sam pulled out her zat and shot one of the Jaffa, careful to only shoot him twice.

 

Within seconds, it was over and the four Jaffa lay dead on the ground. Sam stood back as the Colonel and Teal'c efficiently scavenged the bodies, handing some of the booty to her.

 

"How many does that leave now?" Jack asked, sticking a couple of Jaffa ration bars in his pocket.

 

"I believe ten to twelve," the Jaffa said, removing the armor of one of the Jaffa to get access to his clothes. It seemed morbid to rob the dead, but realistically Sam knew it was literally the Jaffa or them. They all could use another layer of clothing to offset the dampness of the climate.

 

The eerie wail of a Jaffa horn cut through the dead forest. "Crap," Jack cursed. Teal'c abandoned the Jaffa he was stripping, clutching only the man's shirt in his hands. As soon as he was clear, Jack quickly zatted the enemy Jaffa into oblivion.

 

"Colonel!" Sam said, pointing at the approaching Jaffa.

 

"Go," Jack ordered, ushering them away from the Jaffa. Sam ran, hearing Teal'c pounding behind her.

 

It usually didn't take them long to evade the Jaffa in the decaying remains of what once had to have been a majestic forest. The Jaffa did have more endurance, but their armor and bulk usually made them slow. Teal'c had also heard the Jaffa muttering about Sha'ren, mist spirits.  Basically, since they were disintigrating the bodies, the Jaffa thought the forest was haunted and that their comrades were being taken by ghosts. They appeared to only venture into the forest in large patrols.

 

She clambered over a large fallen tree, taking a now familiar path. Jumping down, she cried out as her foot crashed through a rotten log, sending her awkwardly to the ground. She tried to get up, her efforts hampered by her boot stuck in the rotten wood. She felt a hand at her back and Teal'c hauled her upright. She staggered as her injured leg threatened to give out from under her.

 

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the Colonel come back, grabbing Teal'c's staff weapon to provide cover fire. Teal'c pulled her arm over his shoulders, nearly dragging her along.

 

"Teal'c," she protested, not wanting to leave the Colonel behind.

 

"Move it," Jack ordered, pulling Sam's other arm around his shoulders. Working together, the trio quickly vanished among the wooden skeletons.

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

Sam bit her lip, trying not to wince as the Colonel dug a little too deep with his knife. She was lucky; the heavy leather of her boot had likely protected her from a broken, or at the very least, a sprained ankle. But it hadn't kept several large slivers of wood from tearing through her pants and burrowing into her flesh. Splinters that the Colonel was now trying to remove using only the blade of his small penknife and their last working flashlight.

 

"Stop squirming," Jack said tersely, tightening his grip on her ankle.

 

"Sorry," she muttered, digging her fingernails into her palm.

 

"Aah. Got it." He held up the bloody bit of wood. "Want a souvenir?"

 

"I'll pass," she said through clenched teeth. The combination of pain and hunger were making her distinctly nauseated. She closed her eyes, trying to breathe slowly and evenly.

 

"Here." She opened her eyes to see Jack holding out a small packet. "Take the edge off."

 

She shook her head, refusing the pain pills. "I don't think I can keep them down right now."

 

Teal'c handed Jack the canteen and a bit of material torn from the pilfered shirt. "We should find a different shelter," he said. "I have found tracks indicating that the Jaffa have patrolled close to here. Only their lack of skill has prevented them from finding this place."

 

"We can look in the morning," Jack said. Sam gasped at the coolness of the water as he began to wash the blood off her leg. Since the daily high never got much above sixty degrees and with no direct sunlight, the water in the streams was universally cold.

 

After several minutes she started to appreciate the numbing effect of the water. The nausea slowly passed, replaced by a lightheaded feeling that had been becoming more and more common in the last few days. Not in the mood to fight it this time, she surrendered, slipping into oblivion.

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

Jack watched Sam slowly relax, her breathing growing slow and even. When he was sure she was asleep, he stopped bathing her calf and accepted the crude roll of bandages from Teal'c, covering the seeping wounds. A couple of them really needed stitches, he knew. But there was nothing he could do about it here.

 

"The wounds will likely get infected," Teal'c said quietly, not wanting to wake his teammate.

 

"I know," Jack replied. "What are the chances that the Jaffa was wrong and they have a way to call Anubis?"

 

"What are you thinking, O'Neill?"

 

Jack finished bandaging Sam's leg and carefully slid her sock and boot back on, leaving the boot unlaced. "Right now, we have zero chance of getting off this rock. We call a teltac down here, at least we'll have some options."

 

Teal'c nodded, apparently accepting the gamble that Jack was willing to take. He got to his feet. "I shall observe the camp. Perhaps the leader has exaggerated their situation to suitably motivate his men."

 

Jack nodded, pulling out a couple of other scavenged shirts and laying them over Sam as a bit of a makeshift blanket. "We'll find a new camp as soon as she wakes up."

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

Teal'c carefully crept towards the Jaffa encampment. They had chosen an easy to defend position at the base of a large hill. The area in front of the camp was flat and open. It made any attempt to catch then unaware very difficult. The hill above consisted of loose dirt and small rocks, leaving little to no cover and making an assault from that front quite unfeasible.

 

He could see several Jaffa moving about the camp, some at ease, others on sentry duty. He saw inexperience in how they had set up their camp. Their tents were too far apart, putting privacy before practicality. They also depended solely on the vigilance of their sentries to give them sufficient warning of any attacks. They were all young men, only one or two of them appearing to have any experience. That fact had aided in his team's survival to this point.

 

He observed their movements for several hours until a light rain began to fall, then made his way back to the cave, knowing that it might take several more sorties before he could gather the information O'Neill wanted, and he feared it would not be what O'Neill man would want to hear.

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

August 20th

 

Sam slowly sat up, relieved to feel slightly better than she had in previous days. A quick glance confirmed that the Colonel was still asleep. Which made sense; he'd been sicker than her.

 

The day after she hurt her leg, they'd used the last of their purification tablets. They'd been able to stretch that batch of water for a couple of days, but then they had run out and been forced to start drinking the stream water, hoping that since it had been running fast and clear over rocks, it would be safe. They were wrong. Oddly enough, the infection in her leg wound was what had saved her from being quite as sick as the Colonel. She'd slept much of the day so hadn't drunk as much as he had.

 

If it hadn't have been for Teal'c, they both would likely be dead by now. She had vague memories of him lancing and draining a couple of the wounds on her leg, a completely uncomfortable but necessary procedure. She also remembered hearing the Colonel retching horribly as the water he'd drunk made him sick.

 

They were slowly getting better now. At first they'd cursed the rain that had started to fall days ago; now they were grateful. It was keeping them alive. Teal'c had managed to fashion a sort of funnel from some scavenged Jaffa armor. It collected the rain into their canteens, providing them with some relatively safe drinking water.

 

She knew Teal'c was off observing the Jaffa camp again, now that she and the Colonel weren't so sick. Which was exactly what she'd waited for.

 

Getting to her feet, she reached for one of their stolen staff weapons and slowly made her way out of their shelter. They'd managed to find a large hollow tree, one big enough to remind her of the giant sequoias, and had set up camp inside it's trunk. Her leg pulsed with pain with each step, but she knew she couldn't wait for it to get better. It wouldn't get better. And she had to do this before she was too weak to accomplish her goal.

 

Using the staff weapon as a crutch, she limped away from their campsite and towards the crash site of the teltac. Changing camp had actually been a good thing, as annoying and painful as it had been at the time. They were now about two miles closer to the crash site than they had been at the creek.

 

In the back of her mind, she knew she was stupid to venture out on her own. There were still a few Jaffa around, but Teal'c had noted that the heart seemed to have gone out of their search as they too were weakened by hunger and fell prey to their own superstitions.

 

It took her about an hour to hike the two miles to the crater. Peering over the edge, it didn't look like anyone had been there since they'd left it three weeks ago. Water was starting to gather at the bottom, turning the scorched ground into mud. She looked around, trying to find the easiest way down the steep slope.

 

A harsh hand on her arm pulled her around, almost making her lose her balance and fall. "Carter, what the hell are you doing?" the Colonel demanded angrily, his gaunt face pale under his scraggly growth of beard. Shocked, she didn't say a word. "Carter?" he demanded again, this time more gently. "You okay?"

 

"I thought you were asleep," she said.

 

"I woke up. What are you doing?" he repeated.

 

She shook her head and pulled her arm from his grasp, sitting down on the ground. "Nothing."

 

She heard him sigh and he sat beside her. "I doubt you're in the mood for sight seeing. What's going on?"

 

"I…."

 

"What?"

 

"I want his wedding ring," she said quietly, too tired to argue with him any longer.

 

"Excuse me?"

 

"My dad. I want his wedding ring," she said, looking him in the eyes.

 

"Carter.…"

 

"It's all I have left and…I want it."

 

"Look, the body in there…"

 

"It's in pieces isn't it?" she asked.

 

"Yeah, " Jack admitted grudgingly. "He aah…he hit hard."

 

She nodded. "I'm going down there," she said, using the staff to push herself to her feet.

 

"Sam…." He got up.

 

"Colonel. He's my father. I…I'm getting his ring," she insisted. "Whether you agree or not."

 

"I just wanted to say that we'll find it faster if we both look," he said, taking her arm. "The easiest way down is over there." She smiled her thanks and let him lead her down into the crater.

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

"I'm sorry," Jack said, holding out his hand to help Sam up the last few feet of the crater.

 

"S'okay. It was a long shot anyway," she said. "Thanks for trying." They'd spent the last two hours methodically picking through the grisly wreckage of the teltac. They found nothing but the remains of the pilot and shattered components of the ship.

 

"Why the ahh…sudden interest?" he asked.

 

"What?" she asked as they started back towards their camp.

 

"Why now for the…" Jack jerked his thumb back behind them.

 

Sam shrugged. "I just…it was time."

 

"Teal'c and I were talking last night. I think that maybe if we travel a little further afield, we might find something to eat. That stream's got to lead to a lake or something. Maybe some fish survived in the deeper water and…."

 

"I've got blood poisoning," she blurted out, causing him to stop in his tracks.

 

"What?"

 

"I saw the lines when Teal'c changed the bandage this morning. It's not getting better-- it's getting worse," she said, leaning heavily on the staff weapon. "I guess a week, maybe less."

 

Jack stopped and pulled off his hat, scratching his head. "A lot can happen in a week."

 

"Yeah," she said unenthusiastically.

 

"You're not…giving up on me are you?" he asked. "'Cause I'm starting to get a distinct feeling of negativity."

 

Sam shook her head and started walking back towards the camp. "We should get back. Teal'c will worry."

 

"Carter?"

 

"Maybe he managed to find that radio." She kept limping along, pointedly ignoring him.

 

"Sam?"

 

"Colonel. Earth is a week away. I've had a fever for a few days, I think it's higher today…chances are, even if someone showed up right now…."

 

"Aah." Jack held up his hand to cut her off. "I thought we talked about this negativity thing of yours?"

 

"It's called realism, sir."

 

"It's called fatalism. And stop it," Jack ordered.

 

Sam opened her mouth to speak, then turned and limped a couple of steps. She stopped and turned back. "No," she declared. "It's not fatalism. It's reality. We're trapped here. Anubis doesn't give a damn about his Jaffa, or about us. If he really wanted us dead, he'd be down here to do it himself. He left his men behind to die, and he wants us to die, but he doesn't want it bad enough to actually do it. If he did, we'd have had ships in orbit, not a stupid asteroid. We're not worth it to him. We're gonna die here and maybe in a few years someone will come along and find three bodies in that damn tree and the mystery of SG-1 will be solved and filed away as an insignificant little footnote to some damned classified report. That's not me being a quitter-- that's just the way things are.  We can't just will things to be the way we want them to be. Because believe me if we could…" She stopped as her voice broke.

 

Jack didn't respond, but instead stepped forward, pulling her into a hug. "I know," he said simply. He held her for a few seconds, then released her when she pulled back slightly. "It looks like rain, we should get back before we get wet," he said, looking away as she wiped her face off with her sleeve.

 

"Right. You might melt," she quipped. "Isn't that what happened to the witch?" she asked innocently.

 

Jack chuckled, matching his pace to her slow, lurching one. "Payback's a bitch, Major. You just remember that."

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

Jack fought the urge to offer Sam his arm as he noticed her limp getting decidedly worse. As much as he didn't want to admit it, she was right. Without antibiotics, septicemia would kill her. And there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. Just like….

 

A faint rumble washed over them. "What was that?" she asked.

 

"A ship?" he suggested hopefully.

 

She shook her head. "Too low. It sounded like it came from the Jaffa camp."

 

"Great. Teal'c's making friends again." Jack reached out and pulled her arm across his shoulder. "Let's get back to the camp."

 

They made it to the tree just as the rain started to fall. Sam went inside, gratefully sinking down on a log they'd turned into a seat. She stretched her left leg out, sighing as she leaned back against the tree trunk.

 

"You okay?" he asked.

 

"Fine," she answered automatically.

 

"Right," Jack answered, not believing her. "I'm gonna check on the canteen," he said nodding towards the outside. She nodded and closed her eyes. He picked up their empty canteen and stepped outside, zipping his jacket against the rain. He exchanged the full bottle under the funnel for the empty one in his hand, taking a moment to scan their surroundings. A heavy mist was falling, cloaking the forest in a white cloud.

 

The oppressive atmosphere matched his mood. Was it some sort of rule that the easiest missions turned out to be the biggest pains in the ass? Blow up a mother ship, no big deal, nova a star, no problem. Do a quick meeting with an informant and you end up marooned on a lousy hunk of rock, dying by inches. Carter was sick. As much as he'd tried to deny it, he couldn't shake the weakness he'd felt since he'd gotten sick on the water.

 

Teal'c was suffering too, although he was trying to hide it. Jack hadn't missed the slump in the Jaffa's shoulders and the wan expression on his face. Jack also had the feeling that Teal'c was hiding something from them.

 

A movement in the trees caught his attention and he tensed, almost dropping the bottle. Teal'c staggered into the open, falling to his knees. "Carter!" Jack yelled, hurrying forward. He kept Teal'c from falling on his face. The Jaffa was covered in mud, blood running from a deep cut on his head. "Teal'c? You okay? What happened?"

 

"I will survive," Teal'c said, breathing heavily. He let Jack help him back to his feet, both men making their way back towards the tree.

 

"Colonel?"

 

"Carter, get some water," Jack ordered, helping Teal'c sit down. She picked up the canteen and a rag, limping over to sit beside Teal'c, starting to wash off some of the mud.

"What happened?" Jack asked again, reaching for the staff weapon.

 

"The Jaffa are dead," Teal'c said, taking the canteen from Sam and drinking deeply.

 

"Dead? How?"

 

"The camp was at the base of a large hill. The rains caused a landslide. They were all buried alive."

 

"All of them?" Jack asked.

 

"It looks like you were too," Sam said.

 

"Their camp is totally destroyed. I was fortunate that I had not managed to get any closer than I did."

 

"How totally is totally?" Jack asked.

 

"Everything is buried."

 

"It's over," Sam said quietly.

 

"Yeah. Sweet," Jack said. "No more Jaffa…present company excepted."

 

"No, sir. I mean it's over. If their camp is buried, so is all their supplies. Including food and the radio you thought they might have. It's over," she said.

 

Jack looked at his teammates, seeing the truth in their eyes. It was over. Finding a radio had been their last hope of getting off this planet. And now that hope was gone, buried under tons of dirt. They were all dead men walking. Fatalistically, he played it out in his mind. Carter would probably die first, in a few days or a week at the most. She'd probably be delirious at the end, the high fever literally cooking her brain. Maybe he and Teal'c would have enough strength to bury her, maybe not. He'd probably go next. Already it took all his willpower to do anything but just lie down and sleep.

 

Hunger cramped his gut almost constantly; he knew Carter and Teal'c felt the same way. His body would shut down and if he were lucky, he'd just go to sleep and never wake up.

 

Teal'c would likely die last. Maybe in a few years someone would visit this place and find their skeletons lying in the trunk of this tree. Or maybe not. Maybe no one would ever know what had happened to the famous SG-1.

 

Back on Earth, Hammond had probably already listed them as MIA. He'd eventually have them declared KIA. Life would go on, the SGC would go on. The mystery of SG-1 would turn into some fable used to scare new recruits. He looked at his friends, seeing acceptance in their eyes. He could think of worse ways to go.

 

"Well, there's one good thing," he said, forcing a slight smile on his face "We can have a fire now."

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

Sam watched Teal'c place another piece of wood on the fire, taking more than a bit of pleasure in the feeling of contentment that swept over her. It had taken all Teal'c's skill to coax the damp wood into a roaring fire, but she was grateful that he had. The warmth from the fire bathed her face, and she fought the urge to tell her friend to make the fire bigger.

 

She actually felt warm. For the first time in nearly a month, she wasn't cold. She closed her eyes. All she needed was a cold beer and she could pretend she was back on Earth.

 

"I must leave in the morning," Teal'c said softly.

 

"What?" Jack asked as Sam opened her eyes.

 

"Go where?" she asked.

 

"My symbiote will do much to insure its own survival. Including taking a host. I will not allow this to happen."

 

"So you…keep your shirt on," Jack said.

 

"There is also a risk my symbiote may attempt to take me as a host."

 

"Well, how the hell are you going to.…"

 

"Teal'c, you can't," Sam interrupted.

 

"Can't what?"

 

Sam met Teal'c's eyes. "The only way Junior will never take a host is if he's dead," she said softly.

 

"Teal'c?"

 

"I shall seek a place of solitude, remove my symbiote and kill it," he said. "Before I leave I wish to fulfill a promise I made to Major Carter."

 

"What promise?"

 

"If you agree, I wish to perform the Ritual of Remembrance in honor of Jacob Carter."

 

Sam felt her heart lurch at the mention of her father's name. "Teal'c…." She shot a dubious glance towards Jack. She knew he hated this sort of thing.

 

"What do you need?" Jack asked, giving his assent. "We're a little short on candles…"

 

"Simply your participation," Teal'c said, smiling slightly. "The Ritual of Remembrance is not complex. When a warrior dies, his friends honor his life by remembering him.

 

"I remember working at Jacob Carter's side in Seattle when you infiltrated Seth's compound. That was the first time I ever worked along side a Tok'ra. I had always been told they were vile, deceitful betrayers. And while some fit that description, I am most pleased that Selmac did not. They were loyal and honorable allies and their presence shall be most gravely missed."

 

Sam felt her eyes start to mist as she listened to Teal'c's words.

 

"Jacob…." Jack started. "Jacob was a damn fine officer, and the only snakehead I trust."

 

She stared at the flickering flames, trying to think of what she wanted to say. "My thirteenth birthday…it was just a month after mom died. He…he never was big on family stuff, that was Mom's job.

 

"Every year she'd make a homemade devil's food cake for my birthday. I didn't expect one that year, I really didn't even know if he'd remembered that it was my birthday. He'd forget a lot. I came home from school and found him in the kitchen. He'd left work early so he could bake me a birthday cake," she said, smiling at the memory of Colonel Carter, still in his uniform, a frilly bright red apron tied around his waist.

 

"How'd it turn out?" Jack asked.

 

"He burned it," she said with a smile. "It was the best cake I ever had," she said, almost able to taste the flavor of scorched chocolate.

 

They chatted back and forth for a few more minutes until they slowly began to fall asleep, comforted by the light and heat from the fire. Sam leaned back, propping her head on a log. A familiar feeling ran up and down her spine, pulling her from the arms of Morpheus. Lazily she opened her eyes, squinting in the dim light of the dying fire. A shadowy figure appeared in the opening to their shelter and she stared as it slowly walked in, sitting down beside her. She stared for a moment, and then glanced at Teal'c and Jack, looking for their reactions.

 

Both men remained asleep, which confirmed to her that she was hallucinating. Not wanting to let them know, she stayed silent, studying the figure with hungry eyes.

 

He stared back, then frowned, turning to look behind himself. "What? I got something growing out of my nose?" Jacob asked, shattering the stillness of the tree.

 

Sam gasped, her heart skipping a beat as she heard Teal'c spring into awareness. Jack's eyes flew open, his hand reaching for his zat.

 

"D…dad?" she stuttered, still staring at the figure sitting beside her.

 

"Well, I'm not Apophis," he quipped. "Although maybe he would have gotten a better welcome." She reached out and touched his hand, finding it warm and solid beneath her fingers. "I don't expect much, but a simple 'hi' would be nice."

 

"Oh my God," she muttered, throwing herself at him. She wrapped her arms around his chest, pulling him close. "You're alive."

 

"Yeah," Jacob said, instinctively returning the hug. "I'm sorry I'm late but all hell's been breaking loose up there."

 

"We saw you crash," Jack said.

 

Jacob shook his head as Sam pulled back, wiping her face on her grubby sleeve. "Wasn't me. Probably Anubis' teltac. Yu found out he was here but didn’t know why. I didn't dare show my face for fear Yu would find out that there was something of value on this dirtball. I've been waiting for Yu's ships to leave the area so I could come back."

 

"Is Lord Yu nearby?" Teal'c asked.

 

"He'll be back soon. Which means it would be best if we were somewhere else."

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

They entered the cloaked teltac, Teal'c helping Sam to the back of the ship as Jack went up front with Jacob. "All your stuff's still in the back," Jacob said, closing the door and firing up the engines. "So is a shower if I may be so bold." The ship gracefully took off, easily breaking the bonds of the barren planet.

 

Jack watched it go, unable to hide a smile as it shrank until it was indistinguishable from the other shapes in the sky. "So…we'll be home in a few hours huh?"

 

"Not quite," Jacob said. "Last time we were able to cut through Yu's territories. Given recent events, we need to go around. A week, ten days if we're playing it safe."

 

"Aah, we don’t have that kind of time," Jack said.

 

"What do you mean?"

 

"Carter's leg is infected. We need to get her back to the SGC and some antibiotics yesterday."

 

Jacob shot him an alarmed look. "That bad?"

 

Jack nodded. "Yeah."

 

Jacob pushed a few buttons, putting the ship on autopilot. "Let's see what Selmac can do about it," he said, pulling the healing device out of a pouch at his waist. They walked back to the hold of the ship. Teal'c had found their packs and was sorting through them, pulling out their med kits. Sam had taken off her boot and rolled up her pants leg, exposing her swollen leg. Even from across the room, Jack could see the telltale red streak of blood poisoning tracking up her leg. "Hang on, Teal'c," Jacob said, kneeling beside Sam. "Let's see if this works better." He closed his eyes and the healing device sprang into life, orange light bathing Sam's leg.

 

Jack watched her tense at first, then relax as the alien device mended the damaged flesh, the wounds melting into unblemished skin. Its task complete, the healing device snapped off and Jacob opened his eyes. "That's better." He gave Sam a reassuring pat on her knee. "Why don't you guys get cleaned up? Selmac and I will see what we can do about something to eat."

 

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

September 1st

 

 

"That's pretty much it, sir," Jack said, closing the folder. "I definitely would not recommend…"

 

"Vonra," Sam supplied.

 

"As a vacation spot. The real estate may be cheap but the view sucks."

 

"I'll make note of that," Hammond said ironically. "If no one has anything else to add?" Both Sam and Teal'c shook their heads. "Very well. Doctor Fraiser has informed me that the three of you are on medical leave for the next two weeks so…go home and relax," he said, getting to his feet. "You've earned it." Sam and Jack stood up as their leader turned and left the room.

 

Sam sighed and followed her teammates into the hall. "I wonder if my car'll start?"

 

"If you actually drove something that wasn't older than you are, you wouldn’t have to worry," Jack teased.

 

"My car is a classic," she responded, looking to Teal'c for help. He responded by pulling out his access card and summoned the elevator. "Chicken," she muttered.

 

"Jacob's gone?" Jack asked as they got into the elevator.

 

"Yeah. Garshaw left a message with General Hammond. I guess the transmitter in the teltac wasn't working," she said, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "Apparently they've been trying to contact him for weeks."

 

"So you two never got your dinner?" Jack asked as the elevator opened on the level their locker room was on.

 

Sam shot him a surprised look. "You heard that?"

 

Jack shrugged. "You and Teal'c want to hit Mister Yen's and bring over some dinner?" he invited.

 

"No pizza?"

 

"I'm not in the mood for pizza," he said. "Nineteen hundred work for you?"

 

"Works for me," Sam agreed.

 

 

<><><><><> 

 

 

Jack sat back in the lawn chair, thoroughly enjoying the feeling of a full stomach. He'd have no problem following doctor's orders this time. After the usual round of needles and a through examination of Carter's leg, Fraiser had released them with the admonishment of 'eat and rest'…which pretty much described how they'd spent most of the week it had taken them to get back to Earth.

 

Carter and Teal'c were in the kitchen, scrounging around for the makings for s'mores. Earlier that evening, they'd brought their food out to his deck and had a picnic, enjoying the last of Colorado's warm summer nights. It was hard to believe that it had been the height of summer the last time they'd been on Earth. And they almost hadn't come back this time. The tensions between the three of them hadn't resurfaced since they'd left Vonra, but Jack knew they were still there, they'd been there ever since…since that day in the infirmary.

He still couldn't tell them what he'd seen, hell, he didn't believe it himself. But he had a funny feeling that they didn't need that right now. They needed something else, something simpler.

 

 

He sighed and took another slug of his beer, more for some dutch courage than out of a real thirst as Sam and Teal'c came outside, bearing their booty. "These marshmallows are almost as old as my car," Sam quipped, sitting down beside the barbecue in Jack's yard.

 

Teal'c started unwrapping the Hershey bars as Sam started to skewer the fluffy white confections with the barbecue fork.

 

"I'll never forget that dinner on Abydos, they'd cooked this…butt-ugly thing. None of us wanted to touch it. Daniel just sat right down and ate some of it." Jack saw his friends stiffen at the mention of Daniel's name. Sam stared straight ahead, the marshmallow falling unnoticed into the flames.

 

"Many nights after I had completed kelnoreem, I would find Daniel Jackson in his office. We would speak of many topics, often in Goa'uld. He always welcomed my inquiries."

 

Sam was silent for a few moments, and then smiled slightly. "Right after the program started, you were actually still on the planet, but we didn’t know that…we'd brought back that blue crystal and we got Teal'c to shoot it in the gate room. It seemed like a great idea at the time but…we got in so much trouble. I think that's when General Hammond decided that Daniel needed his own office."

 

They fell into a companionable silence, Sam toasting more marshmallows and making s'mores. "When we get back, Hammond wants us to find a fourth," Jack said, taking one of the treats.

 

"Do you have someone in mind?"

 

Jack shook his head. "If Rothman wasn't dead I'd think about him, but," he shrugged. "Just have to see if someone works out."

 

"And if no one does 'work out', O'Neill?" Teal'c asked, cramming a s'more into his mouth.

 

"Could always do a threesome," Jack suggested, a leering grin on his face. Sam rolled her eyes and lobbed a marshmallow at Jack, catching him in the middle of his chest.

 

"What about Jonas Quinn?" Teal'c asked.

 

"What about him?" Sam said.

 

"Jonas Quinn has expressed the desire to join a SG team," Teal'c suggested.

 

Jack snorted loudly. "Yeah, that'll be the day."

 

~Fin~

 

Thanks to Adi for the plot help and Sue for keeping me on the straight and narrow


End file.
